Trump Watch

Amy Wilentz of The Nation talks about Kavanaugh, Trump, and women --the women in the hearings, in Kavanaugh's past, and in America. Also: John Nichols on politics and the Senate--and how Mitch McConnell is killing the senate. Plus: Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of the Law School at UC Berkeley, says the Supreme Court will soon have FIVE Republican justices, all of whom were seated illegitimately.

The facade has been ripped off: Christine Blasey Ford faced the Senate Judiciary Committee today, followed by a raging Brett Kavanaugh. Moments after the hearing adjourned, we turned to historian Rick Perlstein and journalist Sarah Posner for their comments on the "ugly business" of the Republican-dominated Judiciary Committee.

Did Trump's Supreme Court nominee try to rape a 15-year-old girl when he was 17-years old, 36 years ago? Was he telling the truth when he said he did not, and how much should it matter now? For comment we turn to Amy Wilentz. Next, Michael Moore's new film, "Fahrenheit 11/9" opens tomorrow — David Edelstein, chief film critic for New York Magazine, shares his review. Finally: Michael Moore on Trump--and his film, "Fahrenheit 11/9."

Republican Senate candidate and current Florida Gov, Rick Scott challenged Trump today on Puerto Rico casualty figures; SCOTUS nominee Kavanaugh has been accused of sexual misconduct, and, measuring the Blue Wave now that Obama has joined the campaign — Harold Meyerson with the political update. Next, Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to the U.S. Congress, has quit the House to run for state Attorney General. What was he thinking? David Dayen reports. Plus: Unions are fighting for their lives and DeVos wants to put more guns in schools — we talk with Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation for Teachers about the state of education.

In a dramatic showdown on the floor of the Senate, the third day of hearings for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J. released documents deemed 'committee confidential' — and, last Tuesday, Boston city councilor Ayanna Pressley unseated 10-term US Rep. Michael Capuano in a Democratic primary — John Nichols with the political update. Also, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Miriam Pawel on Jerry Brown's fight against climate change--and Donald Trump. Her new book is “The Browns of California: The Family that Transformed a State and Shaped a Nation.” Finally — Melania Trump: Hero of the people, or accomplice of evil? We turn to Amy Wilentz for comment.

After 40 years as an investigative journalist, Judith Coburn became a private investigator. We talk with her about Surveillance Capitalism in the Age of Trump. Next, Florida's general election for governor will feature two candidates who could not be more different: Andrew Gillum, a black progressive, and Ron DeSantis, "a fully 'Trumpacized'" conservative -- John Nichols reports. Plus: We might have reached peak-Trump, but Gary Younge says, "if Dems want to win, they've got to motivate their base."

Trump's attorney Micheal Cohen has pled guilty to many crimes of bank fraud and tax fraud but there were two really significant ones: payments of hush money to porn star Stormy Daniels (real name, Stephanie Clifford) and Playboy model Karen McDougal -- on orders of the president. Harold Meyerson of The American Prospect comments. Also: Around the world, mothers and pregnant women are undervalued, discriminated against, and punished -- we talk with Katha Pollitt about why and how. Plus: Farah Griffin of Columbia University comments on Aretha and Angela, and Aretha and Obama.

Amy Wilentz comments on the mental and emotional status of the president, as analyzed by 27 psychiatrists in 'The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump,' a book edited by Bandy X. Lee. The book was number four on the New York Times bestseller list. Also: Would Pence be worse? Jane Mayer of The New Yorker reports—she interviewed more than 60 people in search of answers, including Pence’s mother. Several say he’s wanted to be president at least since high school. Plus: America After Trump: E.J. Dionne of The Washington Post argues that Trump has mobilized progressive political forces that can transform America—and he reminds us that Trump never had a majority of voters, and is the most unpopular presidents in our history. E.J. is co-author of 'One Nation After Trump: A Guide to the Perplexed, the Disillusioned, the Desperate, and the Not-Yet-Deported'--it's out now in paperback.

Left politics can win all over the country, not just in New York City and Chicago and LA – that’s what Mike Lux says, he’s a longtime strategist for the progressive movement and Democratic candidates, and his new book is “How to Democrat in the Age of Trump.” Katha Pollitt is not happy with leftists calling Trump a “fascist” – maybe there’s a better term for his attacks on democracy, which have a lot in common with authoritarian leaders in Russia, Turkey, Egypt, Hungary, Poland, and other places. The foundation for all of them: austerity, pushed by the big banks and right-wing parties, which creates the economic anxiety that fuels racism and anti-immigrant sentiment.

August 1968, 50 years ago: fighting the police outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, while the whole world was watching: it was the culmination of an overwhelming year for the anti-war movement. But where was young Donald Trump? Activist, sociologist and author of "The Sixties: Years of Hope, Days of Rage," Todd Gitlin, comments on politics then -- and now. Plus, John Nichols says the age of Trump is NOT a golden age for American journalism -- cutbacks and mass layoffs have crippled our news media, just when we need them the most.

Pulitzer prize-winning restaurant critic Jonathan Gold died July 21; Harold Meyerson talks about how he taught readers in LA about the new immigrant city around them--by exploring immigrant neighborhoods and their restaurants. Harold also reviews Trump world after Trump's worst week. Also Tom Frank explains how we got from Obama to Trump -- his new book is “Rendezvous with Oblivion." Plus Bob Zaugh tells amazing and true stories about the LA draft resistance movement in the Vietnam era. He helped organize the exhibit, "We Won't Go: The L.A. Resistance, Vietnam and the Draft," on view at the Getty Gallery of the Central Library in Downtown Los Angeles until August 19th. Exhibit details here: https://bit.ly/2uq5iee

Harold Meyerson of The American Prospect analyzes Trump’s tumultuous post-Putin week, perhaps a turning point for Republicans--at least some Republicans. Also: Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of the Law School at UC Berkeley, talks about the worst things about Brett Kavanaugh, and about his greatest vulnerabilities in the upcoming confirmation hearings for Trump’s Supreme Court nominee. Plus: Does your job make a meaningful contribution to society? David Graeber posted that question on the internet – a million people clicked on it, and many posted answers. Now his book about those answers is out – it’s called ‘B.S. Jobs,’ and it casts dramatic light on our economy and politics.

Laurent Dubois, author of "The Language of the Game: How to Understand Soccer," and Alan Minsky, KPFK Program Director, and founding member of the People's Game Football Collective, join guest-host Amy Wilentz to explore the world of the World Cup. Plus: Jeff Wasserstrom, American historian of modern China and Professor of History at the University of California, Irvine, talks about Xi Jinping, Trump and China today. Last, we speak with James North, author of "Freedom Rising, a first-hand look at apartheid South Africa," about the trouble in Haiti--not random violence, but focused on elite targets.

The Supreme Court gave the green light to anti-abortion 'pregnancy crisis centers' in California, and the campaign to overturn Roe v. Wade is under way -- we talk with Katha Pollitt about the future of abortion rights with Trump's Supreme Court. Next up, David Cole, Legal Director of the ACLU talks about voting rights and the ACLU in the age of Trump--and says "vote like your rights depended on it." Finally: Trump in June: the bad, the ugly, and the merely inexplicable -- Amy Wilentz joins us in-studio.

The only Republican in the House from LA County, Steve Knight, is facing a strong challenge from first-time Democrat Katie Hill. He's against Obamacare; she's for Medicare for All -- and her chances look good. Dana Goodyear of the New Yorker reports. Plus: Despite Trump's reversal on family separation at the border, the crisis continues. Sonia Nazario, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and author of "Enrique's Journey," a book that detailed experiences of Latin American children immigrating to the US, joins us today to talk about Trump's fake news, the experiences of migrants, and how we might improve family detention while people are waiting for their asylum hearings. Also: a really bad week at the Supreme Court Unions: for unions, for stopping gerrymandering, and for replacing Justice Anthony Kennedy: Harold Meyerson of the American Prospect reports on what we should do now.

Over 11,000 immigrant children are being held in detention centers across the US: Harold Meyerson of The American Prospect comments on the political disaster for Trump of his family separation policy; Zoe Carpenter of The Nation reports on the inside of a Border Patrol children's detention center in Texas--and the uncertainities those children now face; and Ahilan Arulanatham, Legal Director of the ACLU of Southern California, has the latest on family detention litigation--and what people can do to help.

Seymour Hersh won a Pulitzer Prize in 1970 for his expose of the My Lai massacre—he was a 33-year-old freelancer at the time. Since then, he’s won pretty much every other journalism award. He’s worked as a staff writer for The New York Times and The New Yorker. He’s also written a dozen books, most recently Reporter: A Memoir. Plus: Since Trump took office, the Democrats have flipped 44 state legislative seats. What's next for the Democrats? John Nichols reports.

Trump asked for, and got, a ten percent increase in defense spending this year – even though the American military is the most massive, the most technologically advanced, and the best-funded fighting force in the world. But in the last fifteen years of constant war it has won nothing. Tom Engelhardt comments; he’s the legendary editor who created and runs the TomDispatch website, and his new book is “A Nation Unmade by War.” Plus: Trump and Syrian refugees: During Obama’s last year, about 10,000 were admitted to the US; so far this year, the number is eleven. Wendy Pearlman explains – she interviewed hundreds of Syrian refugees across the Middle East and Europe. Her new book is “We Crossed a Bridge and It Trembled: Voices from Syria."

After reviewing Trump’s growing confrontation with Europe, Yanis Varouvakis concludes that 'Trump Isn’t Stupid.' Yanis is a former finance minister of Greece who took office in 2015, after five years of debt crisis and economic and social decline had left half the country’s young people unemployed. Greece at that point elected the most radical coalition to govern a European country in decades. Yanis became a European-wide celebrity when he resisted the demands of Europe’s bankers for austerity as Greece held out for restructuring its debt, --But then the government submitted and Yanis left office. Now he has co-founded an international grassroots movement that is campaign for the revival of democracy in Europe. He’s written many books, most recently “Adults in the Room” and “Talking to my Daughter About the Economy—or, How Capitalism works—and how it fails.” Also: there are 219,000 women in prison in the United States -- Rachel Kushner’s new novel, “The Mars Room,” is a story about of one of them. She’l

Is Trump crazy? Amy Wilentz talks about 'The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump,' a book edited by Bandy X. Lee, in which 27 psychiatrists and mental-health experts give their assessments of the president. The book was number four on the New York Times bestseller list. Also: Trump and the NRA: at the beginning of the 2016 campaign, Trump's status as a gun person was uncertain -- but he succeed in transforming himself during the campaign. The Nation's George Zornick reports (recorded after the Las Vegas shootings).